Assembly Welcomes Back Classes
October 24, 2018
Justin Coronado (11), said “[Hungry, Hungry Hippos] consisted of 5 teams freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors, and teachers each trying to put as many balls as possible into a basket. One person from each team was tied down to a chair and another teammate had to pull them in and out to retrieve the balls. Whoever got the most balls in the basket won.”
Matai Suitonu, another student who played, said “The game they had me play was definitely tiring. It was a lot of fun and it felt good competing against the other classes and gettin the dubs.” Photo by Elaina Bolanos
According to senior leadership students, the purpose of the Welcome Back Assembly was to set the tone for the school year and hype up all new and returning students for the upcoming school year.
The assembly consists of performances from Radford cheerleaders, a few moving words from student council, and games followed by class cheers.
Games of twists on “Hungry, Hungry Hippos” and “Mr. Freitas Says” as a fun substitute for Simon Says drew interest and energy from the crowd, who were wildly cheering in support of their classes. The spirit of friendly competition was a compelling sight for many.
The assembly was an overall enjoyable experience. Newcomers witnessed a unique experience of a Radford assembly and upperclassmen watched as their peers improved from last year. After disappointment in their efforts the previous years, the class of 2019 showed their improved class spirit.
“We had a rough past with competing with the other classes but this year we coming out to get dubs. Honestly, after last year getting second or third it felt like I was empty because I knew our whole class wasn’t giving there all,” Matai Suitonu (12) said. “So this year I felt it was different because we all realized that it is our last year together and we got to make the most of it.”
After practicing the stomp and cheering their loudest, the class of 2019 felt the resounding support of their peers.
“After being with the seniors today I was very very proud seeing how much we’ve grown over the past three years,” Ralia Techur (12) said. “We finally stepped up to the plate and made it known that we are class of 2019.”
Class of 2019 is satisfied with their win and look forward to a successful year.
“I think that’s the best our class has done at any assembly in the past but I do believe there’s always room for improvement even if we did do good,” Rose Penamora (12) said. Her goals are “to have everyone involved and to enjoy their last year here at Radford and make new friends within our class.”
Juniors took pride in their performance at the assembly.
“We showed them wassup, we were 110 percent and perfectly represented PLUR,” Liyah Agas (11) said. PLUR stands for peace, love, unity, and respect.
Rams took a break from classes to meet up with friends, chant the class cheers, and watch or participate in the games.
“At the assembly, I had such a good time,” Noah Henderson (10) said. “I had so much fun during the chant my throat got sore. All in all that was one of the best assemblies I had.”
While some had a blast, others were slightly disappointed in the outcome.
Jilliyn Chapman (10) said, “The sophomores should have won.”
According to Suitonu, “The purpose of the welcome back assembly is to show the whole school introducing the freshmen what it’s like to have school spirit.”
Freshman Grace Honeycutt found that in her first experience.
“The assembly was fun and I think it allowed the freshman students to see how Radford works and be more interactive,” she said.
Leadership hopes this was a good start for the year and is ready to compete at the Homecoming Assembly.